De adventu angeli in occursum anime
The Angel Appears to the Soul
God sends an angel ahead to meet Tundale's soul, and the radiant angel draws near, calls him by name, and greets him.
He sent his own angel ahead to meet him. Looking up from a distance, Tungdale saw him coming toward him like an exceptionally bright star. He fixed his gaze on him without flinching, hoping that through him some guidance would be given to him. When the angel had drawn near, he called him by name and greeted him, saying: 'Greetings,' he said, 'Tungdale — how are you faring?'
The Soul's Cry of Distress
Overcome with fear and joy, the wretched soul cries out that the pains of hell have surrounded him, and the angel gently rebukes him for never before calling him lord or father.
But when that wretched man saw the handsome young man, for he was beautiful in appearance beyond all the children of men, and hearing himself called by his own name by him,✦1 out of fear and joy together with tears he broke into such a cry. 'Alas,' he said, 'father, lord, the pains of hell have surrounded me; the snares of death have overtaken me.'✦2 To whom the angel replied. 'Only now,' he said, 'do you call me lord and father, whom you always and everywhere had with you. And yet you never deemed me worthy of such a name?'
The Neglected Guardian
The soul protests that he has never seen or heard the angel, and the angel replies that he has followed him from birth but was never heeded.
He answered. 'Lord, where have I ever seen you? Or where have I ever heard your most sweet voice?' The angel answered and said to him, 'I always followed you from your birth wherever you went, and you were never willing to listen to my counsel.'
Mercy Shown Over Judgment
The angel points to the unclean spirit the soul followed, declares that God's mercy prevails over judgment, and comforts the soul that it will suffer only a few things out of many.
And stretching out his hand toward one of the unclean spirits, who above the others railed against her more fiercely — 'Look,' he said. 'You whose counsel you followed. and you had completely ignored my will. But because God always prefers mercy to judgment, his undeserved mercy will not fail you either. So be at peace and glad. because you will suffer a few things out of many. which you would have suffered.
The Call to Follow
The angel attributes the soul's rescue to the mercy of the Redeemer and Creator, then commands the soul to follow and hold carefully to what will be shown, for it must return to its body.
unless the mercy of our Redeemer — or of your Creator — had come to your aid. vel creatoris. So follow me, and hold carefully to whatever I will have shown you, because you must return to your body again.'
The Soul Leaves the Body
Terrified beyond measure, the soul draws near to the angel, leaving the body behind above which it had stood.
Then that soul, terrified beyond measure, drew near to him, having left the body behind, above which it had stood before.
The Demons' Accusation Against God
The demons, unable to harm the soul, cry out that God is unjust and cruel, accusing him of arbitrary judgment and freeing souls that should not be freed.
But the demons, hearing this, and that they could not bring upon themselves the evils they had been threatening to that soul before, seeing they could not harm her, they lifted their mouths toward heaven, saying: "How unjust and cruel is God, because those he wills, he puts to death, and those he wills, he gives life to. He does not deal with each one as he promised, according to his work, and he renders what is deserved. He frees souls that should not be freed, and condemns those that should not be condemned."
The Demons Turn on One Another
The demons turn against each other, lashing out and wounding one another, leaving an overwhelming stench, and withdraw in indignation and sorrow.
And with these words, they turned against each other. And wherever they could, they lashed out and wounded one another, leaving behind an overwhelming stench. with immense sorrow, and they withdrew in indignation.
Fear and the Promise of Protection
The angel tells the soul to follow, but she fears the demons will drag her back; the angel reassures her that more are with them than with the demons.
The angel who was going ahead spoke to the soul. 'Follow me.' She answered. 'Alas, my lord, unless you go ahead of me,3 they'll drag me back.' The angel said to her: 'Don't be afraid of them,' he said, 'for there are more with us than with them.'4
Scripture's Assurance and the Path Ahead
The angel quotes Romans and the Psalms to assure the soul of God's protection, foretells her limited suffering, and then they set out together.
If God is with us, who can be against us?✦ A thousand will fall at your side.✦ And ten thousand at your right hand; but they will not come near you.✦ Nevertheless, you will observe with your own eyes, and you will see the reward of sinners.✦ And you, indeed, will suffer as I foretold. Only a few things out of the many you deserve.' And with these words, they set out.
Read the original Latin
Misit namque angelum suum in occursum eius. quem respiciens a longe venientem quasi stellam lucidissimam. infatigabiles fecit in eum intuitus; sperans per eum aliquod consilium sibi dandum. Qui cum ei apropinquasset proprio vocans nomine; salutavit eum dicens. 'Ave' inquit 'Tungdale quid agis?'
Videns autem ille miser speciosum iuvenem. erat enim speciosus forma pre filiis hominum; et audiens semet ipsum proprio ab eo nominatum nomine. pre timore simul et gaudio cum lacrimis talem prorupit in vocem. 'Heu' inquit 'pater domine dolores inferni circumdederunt me; preoccupaverunt me laquei mortis.' Cui angelus. 'modo' inquit 'invocas me dominum et patrem. quem semper et ubique tecum habebas. et numquam me tali nomine dignum iudicabas?'
Qui respondit. 'Domine ubi umquam te vidi? Aut ubi vocem tuam dulcissimam umquam audivi?' Respondens angelus dixit ei. 'Ego te semper sequebar a nativitate tua quocumque ibas; et numquam meis consiliis obtemperare volebas.'
Et extendens manum in unum inmundorum spirituum. qui pre ceteris maledicis ei magis insultabat; 'ecce' inquit ille. 'cuius consiliis acquiescebas. et meam omnino neglexeras voluntatem. Sed quia deus misericordiam semper prefert iudicio; tibi etiam non deerit indebita eius misericordia. Tantum ergo esto secura et leta. quia patieris pauca de multis. que patereris.
nisi tibi subvenisset misericordia nostri redemptoris. vel creatoris. Me igitur sequere et quecumque tibi monstravero memoriter tene; quia iterum ad corpus tuum debes redire.'
Tunc illa anima ultra modum perterrita. accessit ad eum propius; relicto corpore supra quod steterat prius.
Demones autem hec audientes. et mala que antea illi anime minabantur. inferre se non posse conspicientes; posuerunt in celum os suum dicentes. 'O quam iniustus et crudelis est deus; quia quos vult mortificat. et quos vult vivificat. non sicut promisit unicuique secundum opus suum. et meritum reddit. Liberat animas non liberandas; et dampnat non dampnandas.'
Et his dictis; in semet ipsos insurrexerunt. et quibuscumque poterant alter-utrum se plagis dampnaverunt; et nimio fetore relicto. cum ingenti tristicia. et indignatione recesserunt.
Angelus vero precedens dixit ad animam. 'Sequere me.' Illa autem respondit. 'Heu domine ni si precesseris. isti me retro rapient.' Cui angelus. 'Ne timeas' inquit 'eos; plures enim nobiscum sunt. quam cum illis.
Si deus nobiscum; quis contra nos est? Cadent quidem a latere tuo mille. et decem milia a dextris tuis; ad te autem non appropinquabunt. Veruntamen oculis tuis considerabis; et retributionem peccatorum videbis. Et tu quidem patieris sicut predixi. pauca de multis que mereris.'
Et his dictis; profecti sunt.
Scripture echoes
- ↩Ps.44.3 — For it was not by their own sword that they took the land, nor did their own arm save them; but it was your right hand, your arm, and the light of your face, for you delighted in them.
- ↩Ps.116.3 — The cords of death entangled me, and the snares of Sheol found me; distress and anguish I found.
- ↩Rom.8.31 — What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us?
- ↩Ps.90.7 — For we are consumed by your anger, and by your wrath we are dismayed.
- ↩Ps.90.7 — For we are consumed by your anger, and by your wrath we are dismayed.
- ↩Ps.90.8 — You have set our iniquities before you, our secret sins in the light of your presence.
Notes
- 1 ↩Possible allusion to Psalm 44:3 (Vulgate) 'speciosus forma prae filiis hominum' — 'you are beautiful in form beyond the children of men.' Final resolution deferred to Moses stage.
- 2 ↩Possible allusion to Psalm 116:3 (Vulgate) 'circumdederunt me dolores inferni... laqueos mortis' and/or Psalm 17:6. Final resolution deferred to Moses stage.
- 3 ↩ni si: likely a variant or compound for nisi 'unless'; rendered as 'unless' to preserve the conditional sense.
- 4 ↩quam cum illis: the comparative 'quam' completes the comparison begun in the previous sentence ('plures enim nobiscum sunt quam cum illis' — 'more are with us than with them'). The prepositional reading of cum is preferred.
Visions of Tondal (Les Visions du chevalier Tondal) companion
Tondal came back and changed how he lived daily. That's the whole point.
Chosen Portion builds the daily practice Tondal's vision demanded: a morning reading that keeps eternity in view.
The Visio was written 'for the edification of many' as a spur to daily amendment of life, and Chosen Portion supplies that daily spur with a morning reading and evening examen.
- A daily portion from historic texts on living well and dying well
- The complete 27-chapter Visions of Tondal in modern readable English
- A built-in daily examen prompt — 2 minutes at day's end